Information processing device

ABSTRACT

The present invention is an information processing device which registers in a map database, a charging point in which charging equipment is located at the time of charging of an electric vehicle, including a registration section that, in a case where the charging point is located within a facility area registered in the map database, registers in the map database, the charging point in association with positional information of the facility area.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This is a continuation application of U.S. patent application Ser. No.13/978,636, filed Jul. 8, 2013 which is a national phase applicationbased on the PCT International Patent Application No. PCT/JP2011/050266filed on Jan. 11, 2011, the entire contents of both of which areincorporated herein by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to an information processing device whichregisters charging points in a map database when mobile objects arecharged.

BACKGROUND ART

As a technical literature relating to this field, Patent literature 1 isknown. In this publication, a charging point registration device isdisclosed which registers a current position of an electric vehicle as acharging point when a charge amount at the time of restart of theelectric vehicle is increased to a predetermined amount or more comparedto a charge amount at the time of stop of the electric vehicle.

CITATION LIST Patent Literature

-   [Patent Literature 1] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application    Publication No. 2010-204042

SUMMARY OF INVENTION Technical Problem

Incidentally, charging equipment requires a smaller installation spacecompared to a general gas station, and may be installed in variouslocations such as shopping malls and parking lots. As a result, ifinstallation locations are diversified, it is expected that smallcharging equipment which is hard to find will be increased. Therefore,so as to allow users to reliably reach charging equipment, improvementin the accuracy of the positional information of the charging point isdemanded.

In view of the above problem, an object of the present invention is toprovide an information processing device in which accuracy of positionalinformation of charging points to be registered in a map database can beimproved.

Solution to Problem

The present invention is an information processing device whichregisters in a map database, a charging point in which chargingequipment is located at the time of charging of a mobile object,including a registration unit that, in a case where the charging pointis located within a facility area which is registered in the mapdatabase, registers in the map database the charging point inassociation with positional information of the facility area.

According to the information processing device relating to the presentinvention, in a case where the charging point is located within afacility area such as shopping malls, the charging point in associationwith positional information of the facility area is registered in themap database, and thus it is possible to reliably register in the mapdatabase, information as to whether or not the charging point is withinthe facility area, and to improve an accuracy of the positionalinformation of the charging point.

In the information processing device relating to the present invention,it is preferable that the registration unit respectively hierarchizepositional information of the facility area and the charging point intoan upper level and a lower level, and registers the hierarchized data inthe map database.

According to the information processing device relating to the presentinvention, the charging point is hierarchized and registered asinformation in the lower level of the positional information of thefacility area, and thus it is possible to facilitate an access to thecharging point from the positional information of the facility area.Therefore, according to the information processing device, the access tothe charging point by the user is facilitated, and thus it is possibleto shorten a search time of the charging point.

In the information processing device relating to the present invention,it is preferable that the registration unit register in the mapdatabase, the current position of the mobile object as the chargingpoint at the time of charging.

According to the information processing device relating to the presentinvention, it is possible to realize efficient registration of thecharging point by taking the current position of the mobile object asthe charging point at the time of charging.

In the information processing device relating to the present invention,it is preferable to further include a registration prohibitiondetermination unit that, in a case where the charging point is locatedwithin the facility area, determines whether or not the charging pointis prohibited from being registered, based on a facility classificationof the facility area.

According to the information processing device relating to the presentinvention, it is not appropriate to register in the shared map database,the position of charging equipment for home use which is provided in ageneral house or charging equipment dedicated for employees which isprovided in a company site, and thus it is possible to prohibit thecharging point from being registered in a case where the facilityclassification of the facility area is the general house or the like.

In the information processing device relating to the present invention,it is preferable that the registration prohibition determination unitdetermine that the charging point is prohibited from being registered ina case where the facility classification of the facility area is aprivate facility.

According to the information processing device relating to the presentinvention, it is not appropriate to register in a shared map database, aposition of the charging equipment within the facility area, in a casewhere the facility classification of the facility area is set to aprivate facility, and thus it is possible to prohibit the charging pointfrom being registered in a case where the facility classification of thefacility area is a private facility.

It is preferable that the information processing device relating to thepresent invention further include a display unit that displays thepositional information of the facility area and the charging point thatare registered in the map database, and the display unit simultaneouslydisplay the positional information of the facility area and the chargingpoint associated with the positional information of the facility area.

According to the information processing device relating to the presentinvention, since the positional information of the facility area and thecharging point are simultaneously displayed, the user can know clearlythat the charging point exists within the facility area, and thus it ispossible to improve convenience of the user.

In the information processing device relating to the present invention,it is preferable that the display unit display the charging pointassociated with the positional information of the facility area, in acase where the mobile object enters within the facility area.

According to the information processing device relating to the presentinvention, since the charging point is displayed from when the mobileobject enters within the facility area, it is possible to avoid a screendisplay from being complicated caused by displaying the charging pointbefore the mobile object enters within the facility area, and therebyimproving the convenience of the user.

Advantageous Effects of Invention

According to the present invention, it is possible to improve theaccuracy of the positional information of the charging point.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram showing a configuration ofan exemplary embodiment of an information processing device relating tothe present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a facility area on map data.

FIG. 3 is a flow chart showing the operation of a vehicle-sideinformation processing device at the time of charging of a vehicle.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of a center-sideinformation processing device in a case of receiving positionalinformation of a charging point.

FIG. 5 is a flow chart showing the operation of the vehicle-sideinformation processing device in a case where a user sets a destination.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will bedescribed in detail with reference to the drawings. Note that the samereference numerals are given to the same or equivalent parts in thedrawings, and overlapping description will be omitted.

As shown in FIG. 1, the information processing device 1 according to thepresent exemplary embodiment transmits to a communication center T, thepositional information of the charging point in which charging equipmentC is located when an electric vehicle M is charged, and registers thecharging point in a map database D of the communication center T.

Incidentally, the present exemplary embodiment describes a case wherethe map database D is provided in the communication center T, but themap database D may be provided in electric vehicle M or may be providedin information terminals such as smart phones, notebook computers andtablet computers.

The information processing device 1 determines whether or not thecharging point transmitted from the electric vehicle M is located withinfacility areas such as shopping malls. Here, FIG. 2 is a diagramillustrating a facility area on map data in the map database D. In FIG.2, A denotes a facility area of a shopping mall, and C denotes chargingequipment. Further, Ap denotes a point indicated by positionalinformation of the facility area A on the map data, and Cp denotes acharging point transmitted from the electric vehicle M.

As shown in FIG. 2, for example, the facility area A of the shoppingmall is represented on the map data as a rectangular shape. Thisfacility area A includes, for example, parking lots, passages, and othersites in addition to buildings constituting the shopping mall. Thecharging point Cp is located within the facility area A.

In a case where it is determined that the charging point Cp is locatedwithin the facility area A, the information processing device 1determines whether the charging point is prohibited from beingregistered, based on the facility classification of the facility area A.The facility classification is a classification of types of facilitiessuch as shopping malls, private parking lots, gas stations, generalhouses or factories of companies. Since it is not appropriate toregister in the map database D of communication center T, the positionof the charging equipment for home use in a case where the facilityclassification of the facility area A is the general house or the like,the information processing device 1 determines that the charging pointis prohibited from being registered.

In a case where the facility classification of the facility area A isthe shopping mall or the like, the information processing device 1determines that the charging point is not prohibited from beingregistered. In a case where it is determined that the charging point isnot prohibited from being registered, the information processing device1 registers in the map database D, the charging point. At this time, theinformation processing device 1 associates and registers the chargingpoint Cp and positional information Ap of the facility area A.

Hereinafter, a configuration of the information processing device 1relating to the present exemplary embodiment will be described.

As shown in FIG. 1, the information processing device 1 includes avehicle-side information processing device 2 provided in the electricvehicle M and a center-side information processing device 10 provided inthe communication center T.

The vehicle-side information processing device 2 includes a chargingElectronic Control Unit (ECU) 3 which performs an overall control of thedevice 2. The charging ECU 3 is an electronic control unit including aCentral Processing Unit (CPU), a Read Only Memory (ROM), and a RandomAccess Memory (RAM).

The charging ECU 3 is connected to a charging equipment connectingportion 4, a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiving section 5, acommunication device 6, and a Human Machine Interface (HMI) 7. Thecharging equipment connecting portion 4 is a portion to which a plug ofthe charging equipment C is connected. The plug of the chargingequipment C is connected to the charging equipment connecting portion 4,and thus charging of the electric vehicle M is performed.

The GPS receiving section 5 is adapted to detect the current position ofthe electric vehicle M. The GPS receiving section 5 detects the currentposition of the electric vehicle M by using GPS signals transmitted froma plurality of GPS satellites Gs. The GPS receiving section 5 outputsthe detected current position of the electric vehicle M as a currentposition signal to the charging ECU 3.

The communication device 6 is adapted to perform wireless communicationbetween the vehicle-side information processing device 2 of the electricvehicle M and the center-side information processing device 10 of thecommunication center T. The communication device 6 performs transmissionand reception of various signals with the center-side informationprocessing device 10 through a wireless communication network.

The HMI 7 is an interface for exchanging information between thevehicle-side information processing device 2 and the user riding on theelectric vehicle M. The HMI 7 includes a display that outputs imageinformation to a user, a speaker that outputs audio information, and atouch panel and operation buttons that receive the user's operation.

The HMI 7 displays map data on the display according to the operation ofthe user and the current position of the electric vehicle M. The HMI 7displays the positional information Ap of the facility area A that isregistered in the map database D of the communication center T and thecharging point Cp as map data, to the user. At this time, the HMI 7simultaneously displays the positional information Ap of the facilityarea A and the charging point Cp associated with the positionalinformation Ap. In this manner, since the positional information Ap ofthe facility area A and the charging point Cp are simultaneouslydisplayed, the user can clearly know that the charging point Cp existswithin the facility area A, and thereby it is possible to improveconvenience of the user. The HMI 7 functions as a display unit describedin the claims.

If the plug of the charging equipment C is connected to the chargingequipment connecting portion 4 and charging of the electric vehicle M iscarried out, the charging ECU 3 recognizes the start of charging from achange in a charging amount of a battery. If the start of charging isrecognized, the charging ECU 3 makes a charging flag for charging pointregistration. In a case where the charging flag is made, the chargingECU 3 transmits the current position of the electric vehicle M detectedby the GPS receiving section 5 as the positional information of thecharging point, to the center-side information processing device 10 ofthe communication center T.

Also, if the destination of the electric vehicle M is input to the HMI 7by the user, the charging ECU 3 acquires map data including a route fromthe current position to the destination through communication with thecommunication center T. If the destination that is input by the user isa facility area including the charging point, the charging ECU 3automatically performs communication with a charging reservation serverof the charging point, and makes a reservation of charging equipment.The automatic reservation function can be freely canceled or set by theuser. If it is determined that the reservation of the charging equipmentis occupied, the charging ECU 3 inquires of the user as to whether ornot to search for other charging equipment. Depending on the reply fromthe user, the charging ECU 3 re-searches the charging equipment or setsa destination as a destination that is input by the user as it is.

Further, the charging ECU 3 determines whether or not the electricvehicle M enters within the facility area A, based on the map dataacquired by wireless communication of the communication device 6 and thecurrent position signal of the GPS receiving section 5. In a case wherethe electric vehicle M enters within the facility area A, when thecharging point Cp associated with the positional information Ap of thefacility area A is present, the charging ECU 3 causes the positionalinformation Ap of the facility area A and the charging point Cp to besimultaneously displayed on the display of HMI 7. The charging point Cpis not displayed on the display of the HMI 7, until the electric vehicleM enters within the facility area A.

In this manner, since the charging point Cp is displayed from when theelectric vehicle M enters within the facility area A, it is possible toavoid a screen display from being complicated caused by displaying thecharging point Cp before the electric vehicle M enters within thefacility area A, and thereby improving the convenience of the user.Incidentally, in a case where the charging point Cp is set to thedestination, the charging point Cp is displayed on the display evenbefore the electric vehicle M enters within the facility area A.Further, an aspect is possible in which the charging point Cp isdisplayed not when the electric vehicle M enters within the facilityarea A, but when the electric vehicle M approaches within apredetermined distance of the facility area A.

The center-side information processing device 10 includes a map databaseD that stores map information such as roads and facilities. This mapdatabase D is configured of a POI information database D1 and a chargingequipment information database D2.

The POI information database D1 is a database that stores the Point OfInterest (POI) information. The POI information is facility-relatedinformation associated with information such as zip codes and phonenumbers of facilities, in addition to facility names, facilityclassifications, and positional information of facilities. The POIinformation database D1 is a lower database of the map database D.

The charging equipment information database D2 is a database that storesinformation about the charging point that is the position of thecharging equipment. Further, the charging equipment information databaseD2 is a lower database of the POI information database D1. In thecharging equipment information database D2, the charging points isstored as lower information of the POI information in the POIinformation database D1.

Further, the center-side information processing device 10 includes acommunication device 11, the position determination section 12, aregistration prohibition determination section 13 and a registrationsection 14. The communication device 11 is adapted to perform wirelesscommunication between the center-side information processing device 10of the communication center T and the vehicle-side informationprocessing device 2 of the electric vehicle M. The communication device11 performs transmission and reception of various signals with thevehicle-side information processing device 2 through the wirelesscommunication network.

In a case where the positional information of the charging point istransmitted from the electric vehicle M, the position determinationsection 12 queries the map database D about the charging point. Theposition determination section 12 determines whether or not the chargingpoint transmitted from the electric vehicle M is unregistered, based ona query result.

In a case where it is determined that the charging point transmittedfrom the electric vehicle M is unregistered, the position determinationsection 12 determines whether or not the charging point is locatedwithin the facility area registered in the map database D. If it isdetermined that the charging point is located within the facility arearegistered in the map database D, the position determination section 12determines whether POI information of the facility area is present.

In a case where the position determination section 12 determines thatthe POI information of the facility area is present, the registrationprohibition determination section 13 determines whether or not thecharging point is prohibited from being registered based on the facilityclassification of the facility area included in the POI information.

Specifically, the registration prohibition determination section 13determines whether the facility classification of the facility area is apublic facility such as shopping malls or a private facility such asgeneral houses, by using a map database D, a POI information database D1and a POI information list that can be open to the public. In a casewhere the facility classification of the facility area is the privatefacility, the registration prohibition determination section 13determines that the charging point is prohibited from being registered.In a case where the facility classification of the facility area is thepublic facility, the registration prohibition determination section 13determines that the charging point is not prohibited from beingregistered. Incidentally, the POI information of the facility area mayinclude in advance classification information as to whether the facilityclassification is a public facility or a private facility.

Based on the determination result of the position determination section12 and the determination result of the registration prohibitiondetermination section 13, the registration section 14 registers thecharging point. In a case where the position determination section 12determines that the charging point is not located within the facilityarea, the registration section 14 registers the charging point in thecharging equipment information database D2. The registration section 14registers the charging point on the map data of the map database D.

In a case where the position determination section 12 determines thatthe charging point has been registered, or in a case where theregistration prohibition determination section 13 determines that thecharging point is prohibited from being registered, the registrationsection 14 does not perform registration of the charging point.

If the position determination section 12 determines that POI informationof the facility area at which the charging point is located is notpresent, the registration section 14 performs a reserve process withoutregistering the charging point. The reserve process stores the chargingpoint as a waiting charging point in the charging equipment informationdatabase D2. If the POI information of the facility area is newlyregistered from an individual research by a map data management company,it is determined whether this waiting charging point is to be registeredagain.

If the position determination section 12 determines that POI informationof the facility area at which the charging point is located is present,and if the registration prohibition determination section 13 determinesthat the charging point is not prohibited from being registered, theregistration section 14 respectively hierarchizes the POI informationand the charging point into an upper level and a lower level andregisters the hierarchized data.

Next, an operation of the aforementioned information processing device 1will be described. First, the operation of the vehicle-side informationprocessing device 2 relating to the charging point registration will bedescribed.

As shown in FIG. 3, if the plug of the charging equipment C is connectedto a charging equipment connecting portion 4 and the charging of theelectric vehicle M is carried out, the charging ECU 3 of thevehicle-side information processing device 2 recognizes the start ofcharging due to an increase in a charging amount of a battery (S1). Ifthe start of charging is recognized, the charging ECU 3 performs acharging flag process of making a charging flag for charging pointregistration (S2). In a case where the charging flag process isperformed, the charging ECU 3 performs a transmission process in whichthe communication device 6 transmits the current position of theelectric vehicle M that is detected as the positional information of thecharging point by the GPS receiving section 5, to the center-sideinformation processing device 10 (S3).

Next, the operation of the center-side information processing device 10relating to the charging point registration will be described.

As shown in FIG. 4, the center-side information processing device 10performs a reception process in which the communication device 11receives the positional information of the charging point transmittedfrom the vehicle-side information processing device 2 (S11). Thereafter,the position determination section 12 of the center-side informationprocessing device 10 performs a database query process of querying themap database D about the charging point (S12).

Then, the position determination section 12 determines whether or notthe charging point transmitted from the electric vehicle M isunregistered, on the basis of the query result of the database queryprocess (S13). In a case where it is determined that the charging pointtransmitted from the electric vehicle M is registered, the positiondetermination section 12 terminates the operation.

In a case where it is determined that the charging point transmittedfrom the electric vehicle M is unregistered, the position determinationsection 12 determines whether or not the charging point is locatedwithin the facility area registered in the map database D (S14). In acase where the position determination section 12 determines that thecharging point is located within the facility area registered in the mapdatabase D, the registration section 14 performs a charging pointregistration process of registering the charging point in the chargingequipment information database D2 (S15). The registration section 14registers the charging point on the map data in the map database D.

On the other hand, in a case where it is determined that the chargingpoint is located within the facility area registered in the map databaseD, the position determination section 12 determines whether or not POIinformation of the facility area is present, based on the query resultof the POI information database D1 (S16). In a case where the positiondetermination section 12 determines that POI information of the facilityarea in which the charging point is located is not present, theregistration section 14 performs a reserve process without registeringthe charging point (S17).

On the other hand, in a case where the position determination section 12determines that POI information of the facility area in which thecharging point is located is present, the registration prohibitiondetermination section 13 determines whether or not the charging point isprohibited from being registered, based on the facility classificationof the facility area (S18). In a case where the facility classificationof the facility area is a private facility such as general houses orfactories of companies, the registration prohibition determinationsection 13 determines that the charging point is prohibited from beingregistered. In a case where it is determined that the charging point isprohibited from being registered, the registration prohibitiondetermination section 13 terminates the operation.

In a case where the registration prohibition determination section 13determines that the charging point is not prohibited from beingregistered, the registration section 14 performs a hierarchyregistration process that respectively hierarchizes the POI informationof the facility area and the charging point into an upper level and alower level, and registers the hierarchized data (S19).

Subsequently, the operation of the vehicle-side information processingdevice 2 in a case where the user sets the destination will bedescribed.

As shown in FIG. 5, in a case where the destination of the electricvehicle M is input to the HMI 7 by the user, the charging ECU 3 of thevehicle-side information processing device 2 performs a destinationinformation transmission process of transmitting the destination of theelectric vehicle M and information about the current position to thecenter-side information processing device 10 (S21). Thereafter, thecharging ECU 3 performs a map data receiving process of receiving mapdata including a route from the current position of the electric vehicleM to the destination by the transmission from the center-sideinformation processing device 10 (S22).

Next, based on the received map data, the charging ECU 3 determineswhether or not a charging point is present below the POI information ofthe facility area of the destination (S23). In a case where it isdetermined that the charging point is not present below the POIinformation, the charging ECU 3 proceeds to step S29.

In a case where it is determined that the charging point is presentbelow the POI information, the charging ECU 3 performs a remaining poweramount estimation process of estimating the remaining amount of power atthe time of arriving at the destination (S24). Specifically, thecharging ECU 3 calculates a destination arrival time and power consumeduntil arriving at the destination, based on the received map data. Thecharging ECU 3 estimates the remaining amount of power at the time ofarriving at the destination, based on the destination arrival time andthe consumed power that are calculated and the current charging amountof the battery. Thereafter, the charging ECU 3 performs a charging timecalculation process that calculates a time required for charging theelectric vehicle M, based on the estimated remaining amount of power atthe time of arriving at the destination (S25).

In a case where the charging time calculation process is performed, thecharging ECU 3 performs a charging reservation server access process ofaccessing a charging reservation server of the charging equipment of thecharging point through wireless communication (S26). Thereafter, thecharging ECU 3 determines whether reservation of the charging equipmentis unoccupied within a predetermined time from the destination arrivaltime (S27). In a case where it is determined that the reservation of thecharging facility is unoccupied within a predetermined time from thedestination arrival time, the charging ECU 3 proceeds to step S28.

In step S28, the charging ECU 3 performs a charging reservation processof performing a reservation of the charging equipment. In addition, thecharging ECU 3 performs a charging destination setting process ofsetting the charging point within the facility area as a destination.

On the other hand, in a case where it is determined that the reservationof the charging equipment is occupied within a predetermined time fromthe destination arrival time at step S27, the charging ECU 3 performs areservation failure notification process in which a speaker and adisplay of the HMI 7 notify the user of the fact that the reservation ofthe charging equipment is unavailable (S29). After the reservationfailure notification process, the charging ECU 3 performs an inquiry tothe user as to whether or not to re-search the charging equipment (S30).In a case where the user does not select the re-search of the chargingequipment, the charging ECU 3 proceeds to step S44-31.

In step S31, the charging ECU 3 performs a destination setting processof setting the destination that is input by the user as the destinationof the electric vehicle M without change.

On the other hand, in a case where the user selects the re-search of thecharging equipment, the charging ECU 3 performs the re-search process ofsearching a charging point that is available for reservation around thedestination (S32). In the re-search process, if necessary, the chargingECU 3 acquires the map data around the destination by communication withthe center-side information processing device 10 again. The charging ECU3 sets the re-searched charging point as the destination.

According to the information processing device 1 relating to the presentexemplary embodiment described above, in a case where the charging pointin which electric vehicle M can be charged is located within thefacility area such as shopping malls, the charging point in associationwith the positional information of the facility area is registered inthe map database D, and thereby it is possible to reliably register inthe map database D, information as to whether or not the charging pointis within the facility area and to improve an accuracy of the positionalinformation of the charging point.

Therefore, according to the information processing device 1, it ispossible to register in the map database D, the position of theunregistered charging equipment fast and with high accuracy, and thus itis possible to increase usefulness of the map database D whileefficiently compensating the map database D. Further, the informationprocessing device 1 provides a navigation system with positionalinformation of the charging point with high accuracy which is registeredin the map database D, and thus it is possible to more accurately guidethe user to the charging point and to improve the convenience of theuser, even in parks and shopping malls having large areas.

Furthermore, according to the information processing device 1, since thecharging point is hierarchized into a lower level of the positionalinformation of the facility area, it is possible to facilitate theaccess to the charging point from the positional information of thefacility area. Therefore, according to the information processing device1, the access to the charging point by the user is facilitated, and thusit is possible to shorten the search time of the charging point.

Further, according to the information processing device 1, since thecurrent position of the electric vehicle M at the time of charging isregistered as the charging point in the map database D, it is possibleto realize an efficient registration of the charging point.

Further, according to the information processing device 1, it is notappropriate to register in the shared map database, up to the positionsof charging equipment for home use which is provided in a general houseand charging equipment dedicated for employees which is provided in acompany site. Therefore, it is determined whether or not the chargingpoint is prohibited from being registered based on a facilityclassification of the facility area, and thus it is possible to prohibitthe charging point from being registered in a case where the facilityclassification of the facility area is a house, or the like.

Further, according to the information processing device 1, since it isnot appropriate to register in the shared map database the position ofthe charging equipment within the facility area in a case where thefacility classification of the facility area is set to a privatefacility, it is determined that the charging point is prohibited frombeing registered in a case where the facility classification of thefacility area is a private facility, and thus it is possible to prohibitthe charging point within the private facility from being registered.

Further, since the charging point is hierarchized and registered belowthe POI information of the facility area in the information processingdevice 1, in a case where the user selects the facility area as thedestination, it is possible to automatically search and reserve thecharging point within the facility area.

The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above.

For example, in the present invention, the mobile object that transmitsthe positional information of the charging point is not limited to theelectric vehicles. Various mobile objects which perform charging incharging equipment such as a Plug-in Hybrid Vehicle (PHV) or a personalmobile equipment may transmit positional information of the chargingpoint.

Further, an aspect is possible in which when it is determined whetherthe charging point is located within the facility area, the positiondetermination section 12 of the center-side information processingdevice 10 inquires of the user of the electric vehicle M as to whetherthe charging point is located within the facility area. Thus, it ispossible to register the positional information of the charging point ina state closer to the sense of the user.

Further, the map database D may not be necessarily a database providedin facilities such as the communication center T. For example, the mapdatabase D may be a database provided in the ECU of the vehicle.Further, the map database D may be a database provided in informationterminals such as smart phones, notebook computers and tablet computers.In the map database D provided on the vehicle side, since the mapdatabase of the communication center T and the map database of the othervehicles are queried through wireless communication, the data about thecharging point is updated.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

The present invention is applicable to an information processing devicewhich registers in a map database a charging point at the time ofcharging of the mobile object.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST

-   -   1 . . . information processing device    -   2 . . . vehicle-side information processing device    -   3 . . . charging ECU    -   4 . . . charging equipment connecting portion    -   5 GPS receiving section    -   6 . . . communication device    -   7 . . . HMI (display unit)    -   10 . . . center-side information processing device    -   11 . . . communication device    -   12 . . . position determination section    -   13 . . . registration prohibition determination section        (registration prohibition determination unit)    -   14 . . . registration section (registration unit)    -   A . . . facility area of shopping mall    -   Ap . . . positional information    -   C . . . charging equipment    -   Cp . . . charging point    -   D . . . map database    -   D1 . . . information database    -   D2 . . . charging equipment information database    -   Gs . . . GPS satellite    -   M . . . electric vehicle    -   T . . . communication center

The invention claimed is:
 1. An information processing device whichregisters in a map database, a charging point in which chargingequipment is located at the time of charging of a mobile object,comprising: a registration unit that, in a case where the charging pointis located within a parking lot which is registered in the map database,registers in the map database at the time of charging of the mobileobject, the charging point in association with positional information ofthe parking lot; and a registration prohibition determination unit that,if the charging point is located within the parking lot, determineswhether or not the charging point is prohibited from being registered,wherein the registration unit respectively hierarchizes positionalinformation of the parking lot and the charging point into an upperlevel and a lower level of the map database, and registers thehierarchized data in the map database.
 2. The information processingdevice according to claim 1, wherein the registration unit registers acurrent position of the mobile object at the time of charging as thecharging point in the map database.
 3. The information processing deviceaccording to claim 1, wherein the registration prohibition determinationunit determines that the charging point is prohibited from beingregistered if the parking lot is a private facility.
 4. The informationprocessing device according to claim 1, further comprising: a displayunit that displays the positional information of the parking lot and thecharging point that are registered in the map database, wherein thedisplay unit simultaneously displays the positional information of theparking lot and the charging point associated with the positionalinformation of the parking lot.
 5. The information processing deviceaccording to claim 4, wherein the display unit displays the chargingpoint associated with the positional information of the parking lot, ina case where the mobile object enters within the parking lot.
 6. Theinformation processing device according to claim 1, further comprising:a position determination unit to determine whether the charging point islocated within the parking lot.
 7. An information processing devicewhich registers in a map database, a charging point in which chargingequipment is located at the time of charging of a mobile object,comprising: a registration unit that, in a case where the charging pointis located within a shopping mall which is registered in the mapdatabase, registers in the map database at the time of charging of themobile object, the charging point in association with positionalinformation of the shopping mall; and a registration prohibitiondetermination unit that, if the charging point is located within theparking lot, determines whether or not the charging point is prohibitedfrom being registered, wherein the registration unit respectivelyhierarchizes positional information of the shopping mall and thecharging point into an upper level and a lower level of the mapdatabase, and registers the hierarchized data in the map database. 8.The information processing device according to claim 7, furthercomprising: a position determination unit to determine whether thecharging point is located within the shopping mall.